Altered neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in patients with non-affective first episode psychosis and its relationship with symptom severity and cognitive impairment

Signatures of immune dysregulation as clinical biomarker for psychosis have remained unclear. We aimed to compare the Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) of patients with acute non-affective first-episode psychosis (FEP) with healthy controls after accounting for emotional states. We also explored the associations of NLR with symptom severity, onset profile and cognitive functions. The NLR was enumerated from complete blood count taken within a week of assessment. All FEP patients were rated on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Clinician Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) with verbal memory and executive functions assessed with the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery. Prevailing emotional state was measured with Beck Depression Inventory-II and Beck Anxiety Inventory. Out of seventy-nine consecutive FEP patients presenting to the study site, twenty-seven subjects were eligible and recruited. Twenty-seven age-/sex-matched controls were recruited. FEP patients had an NLR of 1.886 over the controls after accounting for scores on emotional states. The NLR of FEP patients was positively associated with CGI-S scores, PANSS positive symptom, disorganization and excitation scores. There was no significant correlation between NLR with the duration of untreated psychosis and cognitive performances. These findings support using NLR as a clinical biomarker in FEP, purporting further prospective study to measure NLR changes in the course of treatment.

Automated summary

This study suggests that the Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) can serve as a clinical biomarker for psychosis. It was found that patients with acute non-affective first-episode psychosis had a higher NLR compared to healthy controls, and this was associated with symptom severity, onset profile, and cognitive functions.